So . . . you have a prospect who buys everything from your competitor.

Or . . . there are clients who purchase a few products from you, but not all that they could be buying.

How do you persuade them to start buying your products – or to buy additional products from you?

How do you convince your prospect to change his/her mind?

Think about this:

There are reasons they might NOT want to switch

They are afraid to make a change – most people have the fear that to make a change means taking a risk.

Other reasons they hesitate:

Bad past experience. They tried a product or service similar to yours and were not happy with it, and/or

They don’t want to take the chance of having problems. (Nobody wants problems.)

One effective way to help prospects feel more confident about buying from you:

Use testimonials and positive quotes from your current clients (who love you).

Providing current testimonial letters written on a customer’s letterhead stationery will cause the reluctant prospect to think again, and realize that “hey, I guess if other people – other businesses – are using this product, (or service) it must be okay.”

What should a written testimonial say?

It should be phrased in a way that takes away a risk or eliminates a fear.

It should be phrased in a way that shows a value benefit.

A testimonial should overcome an objection: ”I thought their price was too high, but I bought it anyway. Now I know they have the best value.”

A testimonial should claim a happy ending: .Ease of use. . . Speed of service. “Now my employees love using the new copier.”

Which sounds better to you? As a consumer and a sales coach, I prefer “responding” to objections, which can open a two-way conversation.

A fascinating experience I had last week was a good example of selling with aggression versus kindness.

Looking online to find wool knee socks (because even here in Virginia Beach, the cold weather will soon be here) I found two sources with exactly the socks I was looking for. Both prices were about the same.

After creating an online shopping cart in both retail websites, I read the reviews on both sites and waited a day to decide where to purchase the socks. Not a big decision, but I wanted to be sure and get the best value, because returning the socks could be a hassle.

The next day, two different emails appeared in my inbox.

The subject line from one of the online retailers: “You Snooze – You Lose!”

A good attention-getter.

The message read:

“Someone else may buy what you’re interested in, so come on back before it’s too late!”

The email from the second retailer used a different subject line:

“Ooops . . . did you forget something?”

That was a kinder and gentler attention-getter, in my opinion.

The message:

“If you had trouble checking out, please let us know. Send us an email or call and we will help you.”

(Good customer service.)

“And, when you do check out, please use this personal 10 percent discount code good for the next 24 hours.”

The decision was easy to make.

I purchased from the kinder, gentler retailer – and the 10 percent personal discount made it much easier to decide.

NOTE: Amazon was not one of these two online retailers.

I don’t know about you; but I prefer the language of kindness and not aggression.

Every now and then we are lucky enough to find someone who offers services in a profession crowded with non-professionals. Someone knowledgeable, with a successful track record who is very good at what he or she does. Someone who – when you ask for an opinion – instead of telling you what you want to hear, will tell you the truth.

“Can you handle the truth” is paraphrasing what Jack Nicholson said during a courtroom scene in the film “A Few Good Men.” His actual words (shouted to the character played by Tom Cruise): “You can’t handle the truth!”

Sometimes we need to hear the truth.

But I didn’t know the truth in my situation would be sort of painful, though necessary.

This is what happened:

I found a web designer online – Mike – who offered on his website “A free no-obligation website or project review.”

On another page of the site there was an easy-to-fill out form asking questions like “What’s on your mind?” and “Tell me more . . .”

Since I needed a few changes on my blog that require knowledge of HTML, and I don’t know HTML (it’s onmy bucket list) I filled out the form and submitted it.

I thought I might never hear from him again, but . . . what did I have to lose by filling out the form and emailing it?

And . . . I thought . . . if I did get a reply, it would probably be five short bullet points with a few polite suggestions.

A few days later I received a five page review of my blog. Five pages!

As I began to read, I realized this would not be just a cursory review. It was detailed. Very detailed.

Halfway through the first page I stopped reading for a few minutes and realized this person actually read every word of my posts and my blog. Each and every page.

Midway through the first page he explained that I am confusing Google. I am confusing Google? Ouch.

I had to stop reading until much later, afraid I would read something even worse.

When I worked up the courage to read more of his review, it included SEO recommendations and suggestions that I knew would take time to complete, but are necessary if I want my blog to have a better chance of being found on Google – or any other search engine.

When I spoke with Mike on the telephone, he listened. He didn’t interrupt or try to talk over me with an explanation of his expertise. This inspired confidence, so I decided to hire him for a few “fixes” (updates) on my blog. These were completed quickly and were exactly what I wanted. Impressive.

Then he went above and beyond, making suggestions I had not thought about.

Now I am in the process of deciding exactly what I want a new blog and a new website to look like. I want to hire him to build a completely new site for me, possibly combining my website with my blog.

If you ever have the need for a knowledgeable and dependable website designer – even if you only want a review of your current site – get in touch with Mike Truese Creations. You will be glad you did.

About Mike Truese Creations: Mike has been rescuing great businesses from bad websites since 1999. He knows that a great website is liked by both people and Google. It has to be fast to download, easy to navigate, responsive (work on any mobile device), and great looking, too! Tell him Ann Barr sent you, and he’ll take 10% off any new website he creates for you.

At nearly every seminar, this subject comes up – especially during role play.

What is it?

The best way to get attention during the first nine seconds of a cold call.

Most of us have a very short attention span, so those first words in a cold call are critical.

Unfortunately, there are four words that many sales people use at the beginning of their first call to a new prospect. Four words that signal to the listener: “I am going to try and sell you something.”

And when the prospect feels this way during the first few seconds of a cold call s/he begins to think of ways to end the call,

or worse . . .

. . . they hang up.

Why use those words if – instead – you can grab the prospect’s attention with something of interest to her or him?

Can you guess what the four words are – that can immediately turn prospects off?

Four Words Not to Use in the First Cold Call

What is your first thought when you are asked “how are you today?” by a stranger who calls you?

I don’t know about you, but my first thought is: This person is going to try and sell me something.

And I immediately begin to think of ways to end the conversation.
I also feel the caller does not really care – and does not really want to know how I am.

The caller feels it sounds good or friendly to ask: “How are you?”

WRONG.

It raises a red flag if you don’t know the caller. People know it is not real. It does not sound sincere.

Instead, begin the call with a message relevant to the prospect’s needs or wants. Words that answer the listener’s mental “what’s in it for me” question.

Dear Reader: You CAN get attention plus build trust and credibility with prospects during your first call. When they know you, like you and trust you, prospects are more likely to become clients and buy from you. My one-to-one private e-course is designed specifically for your situation to get the results you want. Take a look at what my favorite clients say about working with me then contact me and I’ll get back to you within 24 hours. For instant contact, phone me at 757.463.0924. I look forward to helping you achieve your sales goals!

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Testimonials

Ann, I am very lucky to have stumbled into your email list! In my busy day, I get a lot of emails, I have only moments to quickly scan them, and discard most of them. Then there is “Ann”, my friend that I have never met.

I can always count on your to-the-point postings to put some sense to my often bizarre work day. This latest, dealing with price objections, was a gem.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for the good work you do. I really appreciate it, I’m certain many others do to. We normally just hear criticism. I like to make sure that people hear the compliments, as well.

Happy Client

Ann, I just want to say ‘THANK YOU’ for partnering with Carefree to provide your outstanding sales training through your e-class services. As a small business owner that wears many ‘hats’, the process of developing sales people has admittedly been challenging for me over the years (and very expensive when my efforts have failed!).

Your years of experience was one of the reasons I engaged you, but the results you have provided will keep me coming back to you as our company grows.